Organizations such as on-line retailers, Internet service providers, search providers, financial institutions, universities, and other computing-intensive organizations often conduct computer operations from large scale computing facilities. Such computing facilities house and accommodate a large amount of server, network, and computer equipment to process, store, and exchange data as needed to carried out an organization's operations. Typically, a computer room of a computing facility includes many server racks. Each server rack, in turn, includes many servers and associated computer equipment.
Computer systems typically include a number of components that generate waste heat. Such components include printed circuit boards, mass storage devices, power supplies, and processors. For example, some computers with multiple processors may generate 250 watts of waste heat. Some known computer systems include a plurality of such larger, multiple-processor computers that are configured into rack-mounted components, and then are subsequently positioned within a rack system. Some known rack systems include 40 such rack-mounted components and such rack systems will therefore generate as much as 10 kilowatts of waste heat. Moreover, some known data centers include a plurality of such rack systems.
Some known data centers include methods and apparatus that facilitate waste heat removal from rack systems. Moreover, some known data centers include a multiple rack systems having configurations that are non-uniform with respect to component density and usage, such that each rack system generates waste heat at a non-uniform rate as compared to other rack systems. In such data centers, application of uniform heat removal methods and apparatus to such non-uniform waste heat generation sources may not be fully efficient and effective in waste heat removal. Moreover, if rack systems having different airflow arrangements are placed near each other (next to one another in the same row, for example), heated discharge air from some of the racks may cross-heat incoming air to other rack systems, adversely affecting cooling of the other rack systems in a row. For example, if Rack A in a row of racks discharges air heated air to the back of the row, and adjacent Rack B in the same row draws in ambient air at the back of the row to cool servers in Rack B, the discharge air from Rack A will pre-heat the air being drawn into Rack B, thereby reducing cooling effectiveness for Rack B.
In many computer rooms, cooling air carrying waste heat from the rack systems is discharged from the rack systems to the room ambient air above the rack systems. At the same time, an air handling system for the room draws the heated air out of the room through vents in the ceiling or walls of the room, thereby maintaining a steady-state flow of air in the room. Before the discharged air carrying the waste rack system reaches the vents, however, the exit air from the rack systems mixes with the room ambient air. Some of the waste heat from the discharged air is transferred into the room ambient air, which causes the ambient temperature in the room to rise and may create short-cycling and other inefficiencies in cooling of the rack systems.
While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims. The headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not meant to be used to limit the scope of the description or the claims. As used throughout this application, the word “may” is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). Similarly, the words “include,” “including,” and “includes” mean including, but not limited to.